M. Cherif Bassiouni - Nobel Peace Prize Nominee - commencement speech DePaul School of Law 5/17/15

[marym625]

I went to the graduation ceremony for DePaul School of Law yesterday as a dear friend graduated. Such an exciting day!

I was so glad to hear M. Cherif Bassiouni speak. What a speech! I was surprised at how much he addressed that have us all concerned; poverty, torture, Gitmo, war crimes, pay inequality.

The video SUCKS! The camera is not good and I couldn't seem to keep my hand still. But the speech is wonderful.

A little about the Professor

He is Emeritus Professor of Law at DePaul University where he taught from 1964-2012. He has served in numerous United Nations positions and served as the Consultant to the US Department of State and Justice on many projects. He was a founding member of the International Human Rights Law Institute at DePaul University which was established in 1990. He served as President from 1990-1997 and then President Emeritus. Professor Bassiouni is often referred to by the media as “the Godfather of International Criminal Law” and a “war crimes expert.”[1] As such, he is now on the Steering Committee for The Crimes Against Humanity Initiative, which was launched to study the need for a comprehensive convention on the prevention and punishment of crimes against humanity, and draft a proposed treaty. He spearheaded the drafting of the proposed convention, which as of 2014 is being debated at the International Law Commission.

In 2010, Bassiouni donated his personal papers to the DePaul University Special Collections and Archives, where his materials are open to researchers

Among the many distinctions and awards he has received are the Nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize (1999); Wolfgang Friedmann Memorial Award of Columbia University (2012); Cook County Bar Association Lincoln Award (2012); Dominican University’s Bradford O’Neill Medallion for Social Justice (2011); George Washington University Distinguished Alumni Scholar Award, Washington DC (2010-2011); Washington University School of Law, World Peace Through Law Award (2010); DePaul University Via Sapientiae Award (2009); Hague Prize for International Law (2007); Cesare Beccaria Justice Medal of the International Society for Social Defense (2007); The Medal of the Commission de Derechos Humanos del Estado de Mexico (2006); DePaul University St. Vincent DePaul Society’s Humanitarian Award (2000); International Association of Penal Law- V.V. Pella, Champion of International Criminal Justice Award (1999); John Marshall Law School’s Lifetime Achievement Award (1999); Defender of Democracy Award from Parliamentarians for Global Action (1998); United Nations Association’s Adlai E. Stevenson Award (1993); The Special Award of the Council of Europe (1990); and The Secretary-General of the Council of Europe’s Award (1984).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M._Cherif_Bassiouni

[elleng]

1. My law school professor and friend!

[marym625]

2. and you are still lucky here :)

[Enthusiast]

3. Very good! Thanks for sharing that.

[marym625]

4. Glad you liked it

[elleng]

5. Recent news about him: ICC co-founder Cherif Bassiouni under fire for violating Israel boycott.

'A key figure in the creation of the International Criminal Court (ICC) is facing harsh criticism from Palestinians over planned lectures at Israeli universities this month in violation of the growing international boycott.

The noted Egyptian-American jurist Cherif Bassiouni is scheduled to speak on Thursday at Tel Aviv University on “The role of the ICC as justice mechanism: Does it enhance the prospects for Israeli-Palestinian peace?”

He is also scheduled to speak on 25 May at Hebrew University, which has also faced persistent criticism for its complicity in the Israeli occupation.

Bassiouni chaired the drafting committee that wrote the ICC’s founding statute in 1998.

An emeritus professor of law at Chicago’s DePaul University, he has held dozens of high-profile UN positions including chair of the commission to investigate war crimes in the former Yugoslavia in the early 1990s. Bassiouni also chaired commissions of inquiry for Libya and Bahrain in 2011.

'n response to inquiries from The Electronic Intifada, PACBI, the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel, said it had been “shocked to learn” that Bassiouni would speak at Tel Aviv University “in defiance of the guidelines set by the BDS [boycott, divestment and sanctions] movement for the academic boycott of Israel.”'

http://www.localterror.com/icc-co-founder-cherif-bassiouni-under-fire-for-violating-israel-boycott/

[marym625]

6. wow!

I am so not getting into the Israel/Palatine argument. But as far as I am concerned, he is smart enough and dedicated enough that I trust his judgment on this. There has to be good reason he would go

Thanks for the information. It sounds like his life is in danger.

[elleng]

7. I'm concerned for his safety too,

have been for a long time. I suspect he wants to spread his rational point of view, so has accepted these opportunities to do so.

[marym625]

8. and they should allow him to IMHO

[elleng]

9. Definitely

[elleng]

10. Bassiouni defends his position:

http://electronicintifada.net/blogs/ali-abunimah/international-criminal-court-founder-cherif-bassiouni-defends-violation-israel

In his email to PACBI, Bassiouni says he had been unaware that Palestinians had called for an academic boycott until an invitation to speak at Birzeit University in the occupied West Bank had been withdrawn over his planned appearances at Israeli institutions.

Knowing about the boycott now, however, he makes clear he will not respect it.

“If I understand it correctly, this is a secondary boycott since you are boycotting anyone that does not follow your boycott,” Bassiouni states in relation to the rescinded Birzeit invitation.

“I can’t help the irony of having been boycotted and discriminated against all of my life by pro-Israel organizations, such as AIPAC, and now to find you boycotting me,” Bassiouni adds. “The world is full of strange paradoxes.”

The scholar who has headed dozens of international and UN panels in recent decades asserts that by going to Israel he would be continuing his lifelong practice of “speaking truth to power.”

[marym625]

13. Thank you for this

The more I know about him, the more I like him. What an awesome person

[Octafish]

11. Thank you, marym625! Outstanding in every way.

The good professor put his hand on the graduates' shoulders and helped them shove off in a good direction, aware of how the 10-percent-owning-90-percent nation and the "money trumps peace" crowd have created a world where their money and power may be out of reach of democracy and the law, but will still impact their lives and futures in big ways. Through it all, ask the Question: "Am I doing the right thing?" Wow.

[marym625]

12. I was both thrilled and mesmerized

Glad you enjoyed it!

[Octafish]

17. Harold Pinter - Noble Prize for Literature acceptance speech

You might also enjoy this address on Truth from a guy who wrote Fiction:

He and Prof. Bassiouni seem cut from the same cloth.

[marym625]

18. Thank you!

I will have to check out later. Have to run right now. I'm sure I will love it

[Octafish]

19. Maybe not the same cloth, after all. LOL!

I just found this, per Brian Blessed, that in his younger days Mr. Pinter was a bit of a hellion.

How I choked Peter O'Toole - and punched Pinter's lights out: Brian Blessed tells all about his love-hate relationship with the actor and how a wrestling match sealed their friendship

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3251442/Brian-Blessed-tells-love-hate-relationship-Peter-Otoole.html

It only adds to my appreciation for his ability to change into someone better.

[marym625]

14. by the way

Coming from you, I am even more impressed now. You know your stuff. If you like it this much, I know I was right in my awe of him (not that I doubted it )

[Octafish]

15. Here in Detroit, some of the most remarkable families I know are from Egypt.

Physicians and engineers, mostly. Moms and Dads. Sons and Daughters. Apart from some who smoke too much, they are good people in every way.

Professor Bassiouni reminds me of them and their world views. He didn't mention it, but their Faith makes them able to bear the injustices of life. They know that what they -- and ALL people -- really are at essence is a gift from the Creator.

[marym625]

16. That's very interesting

Thanks for that insight